A Rhythm They Only Hear
by Izanaomi
Summary: "But I thought she said they're not dating?"..."She's delusional. Don't believe her when she tells you that. Those two, they're pretty much going to last forever unless Lilly decides she wants to be alone for the rest of her life. Donald would follow that girl into hell and back." Rated M for language and suggestive content.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own any characters, quotes or the storyline from Pitch Perfect.

 **BETA:** Thank you to ICanSeeYourFace for editing and reading this fic. If you're looking for a pitch perfect fix, please go check out her two LillyxDonald fics. They helped inspire me to finish this section of Lilly and Donald's story.

 **AN:** After much time away from writing this pairing (or any pairing) I'm back. I watched Pitch Perfect 2 with the knowledge that Donald would not be in it and found myself writing him into the different scenes. I'll admit it was enjoyable to watch but I cringed at the lack of development of the characters. I wrote this pretty much in one sitting the night after watching the movie. Although, there are elements from my first collection of one-shots, this piece can be read as a stand-alone. It's been almost four years for Lilly and Donald and the rest of the Pitch Perfect gang, so I've envisioned the characters to have developed and matured with those years. For myself, it's been two years since I wrote the first set of one-shots and I think my writing style and sense of characterization has definitely changed as well. Along with this change is my interpretation of the beloved Pitch Perfect characters, especially Donald and Lilly. But anyway without further ado, here's the story. I hope you enjoy!

* * *

 _"Nobody ever seems to understand_  
 _We're miles apart but we're holding hands"_

 _\- Zach Ashton_

Any hope is crushed as they stand in front of the collegiate acapella council and the dean. Lilly feels her heart sink into the bottom of her stomach and all she wants to do is curl up on the ground. It's the worst news to start her senior year. Yes, the performance in front of the President embarrassed them, but the threat of the disbandment of the Bellas is even worse. Lilly hears and stares blankly as Beca tries to negotiate the terms of their punishment. Hoping with all her heart that the end of the Bellas isn't here yet. They're her family.

The rest of the Bellas are quieter than usual and it's unnerving to the brunette who was accustomed to blending into the background of their familiar and comfortable banter. Fat Amy tries to inject some confidence in her own outlandish but meaningful way. It doesn't seem to help as the female acapella group soon parts ways. Lilly blinks her eyes, the Australian shares a glance with her, and shrugs before darting off to another part of campus. Most of the Bellas have class but Lilly scheduled her last year with Monday's off. Her feet move quickly as she scuttles around the bustling walkways of Barton University with a destination in mind. The buzzing of her phone indicating that he's waiting for her call.

The house is eerily silent when Lilly unlocks the door and rushes upstairs with a burning need to hear his voice. The threat of disbandment and the underlying tension that's been lurking in the shadows has left her frantic and nervous. She hates when her friends - the people who have given her a home - are upset. Lilly meticulously unpacks her bag before dropping to the ground and letting out a sigh while her fingers tap impatiently against the wooden floor. A few seconds pass before she reaches for her Iphone in her back-pocket and searches for his number. A familiar number of taps later, Lilly holds the phone to her ear as the dial tone echoes and she hums underneath her breath while she waits for him to pick up.

"Lils," The sound of his voice calms her slightly as she stares at her ceiling that's scattered with signed posters of bands they'd seen together. She wonders if he's getting ready to head to his job in San Francisco or if he's the first in the office filling the silence with beats and soft vocals. Once a singer always a singer.

She blurts out the punishment with no formal greeting, "They threatened to disband us. We're not allowed to hold auditions or compete at Nationals." Not that they've ever needed extra words. He gets her that's what makes him her best friend.

There's an intake of breath from his end of the call, "That's harsh. Just for one untimely mistake?"

It's comforting that he understands the dire situation. Competition for acapella groups is everything. But Lilly can't help the cynical response as her eyes flicker close, "It was a pretty hideous mistake. In front of the President? You can't blame them for the response Donald."

"Come on Lils, don't be like that. Leave that shit to Mitchell, sure she's got enough snark for your whole group."

Lilly breaths a haggard sigh into the receiver, letting the fear and anger leave her body, and whispers, "Frederick misses you." There's a pause before he's chuckling quietly through the call and she shifts the phone as she settles in to listen to him. The silence is comforting rather than oppressive as she bobs her head to an invisible song while she pictures him doing the same in the office.

"Sing me the song babes," is all he says to the silence of the call and the bobbing of her head that he can't see but he knows she's doing. Donald sets up the beat for her as she smiles at the welcomed sound of his beat boxing that never ceases to warm her insides. He's like fire. Lilly doesn't reply to his request and she begins to hum the tune in her head louder. They spend the rest of the hour conversing in music, her heart lightening with every bar, and she doesn't feel so frustrated.

He ends the call with a simple, "Talk to you soon Tiger Lilly." that means far more than a simple goodbye, but she just nods silently before ending the call. They never needed many words and she feels like she can conquer the next year even with this obstacle in the Bellas way.

* * *

One Saturday morning, the Legacy asks about the relationships with the Treblemakers. It's not her fault that her mother told her about the bad blood between the Trebles and the Bellas. Fat Amy's succinct in explaining the changed history as Lilly concentrates on her Tabasco flavoured eggs hoping that it won't start a round of twenty questions about their favourite brown Treble. She doesn't want to talk about Donald. It's useless to hope because Amy's almost finished explaining that Beca's dating Jesse. The Bellas' second favourite couple is her and Donald.

"Lilly here is dating Donald Dravid or as I like to call him brown dingo." Fat Amy explains with a leer and a wink that she ignores in favour of focusing on the Legacy's curious eyes. Another relationship with a Treblemaker seems to confuse the freshman as the blond Australian continues to speak, "Four years ago, he was the beat boxer for Treblemakers and sexy Lilly here made him head over heels for her."

"Remember when we couldn't walk around the house without the fear of stumbling onto them going at it." Stacey injects with a smirk.

Lilly extends her leg to smack her friend's shin in retaliation, stating quietly with no room for discussion, "We're not dating." She doesn't miss the rolling of eyes even but Fat Amy gets the hint and moves onto the no longer existent relationship of Jessica and Benji. There's a hesitation in Emily's demeanor that alerts Lilly that something motivated the girl to ask. With a shared glance at Stacey, there's the suspicion that the Legacy likes the quiet awkward Treble. But Jessica emphatically tells the new girl that she's over Benji and they're just friends now. Still the hesitation doesn't leave her, but Lilly lets it go because at least the attention isn't on her relationship with Donald.

When breakfast is finished, Emily volunteers to help her clean up since it was her turn to wash. In order to keep the Bella house standing, Lilly is never put on cooking duty. It was a moment of weakness with the burner. But she's curious to find out the reason why she volunteered, especially since they have another practice for Worlds coming up. Emily should want to rest up for that. The silence that settles between them is welcomed because Lilly isn't fully comfortable around the brunette and doesn't really want to talk.

"Was it hard dating a Treblemaker?"

She doesn't really understand the question. Lilly isn't a legacy, she's never really understood the bad blood between the two acapella groups, but she tries to come up with an answer, "Not as hard as burning my fingers before dinner."

The girl gives her a strange look that Lilly's accustomed too. Donald would have laughed before offering his fingers instead. But she shifts her thoughts away from him as Emily asks incredulously, "What?..."

"Don't be freaked out Legacy. And you're asking the wrong person. Lilly and Donald are the perfect couple, it wasn't hard for them." Beca yawns as she rummages through the cupboards for food. She grins at Lilly for a split second before turning back to the new girl, "It's not hard. We're a new generation of Bellas, didn't have the need to hate the Trebles especially when Dravid and Jesse took over leadership. Why so curious?" She doesn't tell her about the movie marathons or the annual laser tag tournament. The teams are close now, it's been like that since freshmen year.

"Uh no reason..."

After Emily disappeared back to her room, Lilly thanked Beca quietly, leaning her head on the cool counter, and observed, "Just get back from Jesse's?"

Beca blushed - a rosy hue that dusted her cheeks lightly - before clearing her throat and shrugging, "Yeah, haven't been able to spend much time with him with practice and in...uh class."

"Liar," Lilly calls her out on her bullshit without lifting her head from the counter. She's learned to read Beca over the years especially when Donald graduated and she couldn't occupy her time observing him. But she doesn't push her friend for more information as she sits up and says, "Donald told me to say hi and that you're going to burn in hell with the three headed dog for company."

Beca laughs without batting her eyelash at the strange unlike Donald statement that Lilly figures she can translate in her own time. She smiles warmly at her close friend before standing upright and bidding her goodbye. Biochemistry homework awaits her.

* * *

The secret party breaks the group out of their melancholy state. Lilly doesn't want to agree with the freshman but they're disconnected, which has been forcing their performances and practices to fall flat. The pillow fight didn't help as much as it should have. But the party is a reminder of the riff-off that they're missing, yet there's an energy that they can't resist. The Treblemakers are there and Lilly feels a pang in her heart at Donald's missing figure. She pushes the feeling away as the robed guy explains the rules, which is difficult because she can't take her eyes off the unusual pattern.

The beat boxer for Das Sound Machine catches her attention as she listens to the intricate beats that he's setting up for the riff-off. She's unable to stop the movement of her lips while she fights the urge to join in. He's talented just like the rest of his group but he'd be unable to beat Donald. The energy surges through her body as they break off for the first category. The beatboxer catches her eye and signals her out as his competition by pretending to throw something at her. Her mouth moves quickly as she beat boxes and tosses it right back. It reminds her of the time when she pretend to shoot bullets at Donald at their very first riff-off.

"You're good." The blonde beat boxer comments in a thick German accent when the riff-off ends and the party settles into the usual acapella party atmosphere. Lilly blinks unyielding eyes at him and nods without really speaking. She isn't good at small talk as she thanks the bartender and accepts the whiskey on ice. Her silence doesn't bother him as he gets closer into her space, "I see you accept my challenge during the riff-off."

It isn't a subtle comment as Lilly knocks back the drink and states softly, "I listen to dying cats when I'm bored."

He gives her a quizzical look as if he doesn't understand her. Lilly isn't sure if anyone but Donald really does as he shrugs, "Uh O..kay, do you want another drink?"

Lilly blinks at him before shaking her head and leaning against the bar to look for her friends. She misses Donald and wonders if he's still at work trying to fill the silence with beats or just finishing and about to eat dinner. There's a moment hesitation before she's pushing herself off the bar and headed for the front entrance so she can call him. She fails to see the look that Beca and Jesse share as they head back downstairs from their break. Jesse shakes his head at the ridiculousness of their friends since his phone has been going off nonstop with questions from Donald. As if Lilly could replace Donald.

The weekend before the convention performance, Donald arrives on the Bellas doorstep with a small suitcase and a smirk on his face. Fat Amy greets him with her usual name for him and offers to call Lilly. But it's a useless offer as a blurred figure darts underneath her outstretched arm and tumbles into Donald's awaiting arms. Emily stares curiously at the man wearing thick rimmed glasses who's able to gain such a reaction from the usually quiet and subdued Japanese girl. Stacie sneaks up behind her and whispers in her ear, "That's Donald, Lilly's boyfriend. A word of advice, get some earplugs."

"But I thought she said they're not dating?" Emily recognizes the guy now that she's seen him. A picture of him sits in the Treble's house and he's known as one of the best beat boxers the group has ever had.

"She's delusional. Don't believe her when she tells you that. Those two, they're pretty much going to last forever unless Lilly decides she wants to be alone for the rest of her life. Donald would follow that girl into hell and back." Stacey explains as she waves with a smile at her old friend.

Emily stares at the couple who have yet to let go of each other though they're no longer pressed up against each other. Lilly seems to have gained a spark from Donald's presence as she's introduced, but she doubts that he'll really remember her. The other Bellas seem to be hightailing it out of the house because Lilly's dragging Donald upstairs to her single room. Fat Amy grips her arm and tells her to grab her backpack because no one wanted to be around for a Lilly and Donald reunion.

The last thing she hears is a loud laugh filtering down from the second floor. Followed by a crash.

* * *

"So you were jealous huh?"

Donald laughs as he shrugs noncommittally before he snakes his arm around her waist and tugs her on top of him. Lilly smiles teasingly at him, settling herself along his body, and breathes in the familiar mixture of his deodorant, soap and detergent. She missed it. Just like she missed him, but she keeps her thoughts to herself because it's easier to hide behind the quirky sentences and their beat boxing than to tell him. They're an affectionate couple. The proof in the ridiculous number of occurrences where someone found them having sex or on their way to having sex. Neither Donald nor Lilly were ashamed of their active sex life - or previously active sex life - but they were horrible at expressing their feelings. But they didn't need to express it. It was evident in the way he recognized when she nodded or shrugged or silently laughed through the phone or the way that he mailed her one page of a song that caught his eye that week or the way that he bought her ice cream after a horror film because he knew that she craved it. They didn't need words.

He starts to hum in her ear as she finds her body sinking into his with a content sigh. Trying to beat Das Sound Machine at their own game was making her tense and frustrated, especially with the looming deadline of graduation. But lying next to Donald rids her of all her stress as she softly interlopes a beat to his tune. Donald reaches down to brush the hair on her neck away and Lilly makes a noise in protest, but he answers before she can ask, "Chill babes, they're clean."

She rolls her eyes at him at the amusement in his voice but stills when she feels him press a kiss to her pulse point. An involuntary moan breaks through her parted lips and the tone shifts as she feels the length of his hard body pressed up against hers. Fuck it had been so long since their last night together and her body hums from the anticipation. Lilly mutters bastard into his shirt covered chest and he shakes with silent laughter. An impish glint enters her gaze as she lifts her head to look at him while she grounds her hips down and watches as laughter leaves his body.

There's a groan that sends shivers down her body and Lilly gasps when his cold hands touch her inner hip. He grins at her as he presses his hardened length, hearing the hitch in her breath when he makes contact, against her. Fingers tug the ends of his hair. A mixture of teeth and lips drag against his neck. Legs wrap around his torso forcing both of them to moan involuntarily. Donald runs his hand through her hair and stares at her for a split second before capturing her lips with his and ending any conversation.

They don't leave her room till its dark out.

Her stomach growls in the bliss of their fourth round. Donald chuckles at the sound and Lilly blinks at him with a question in her eyes that he replies, "Alright, let's go find some food."

Lilly grins victoriously at him as she stands up and throws on his shirt that landed on the floor after she had nearly torn it off his body. His eyes follow her as she walks around in his shirt with nothing underneath and he almost drags her back to bed. .

"Donnie, get your lazy ass out of bed. I'm starving." Lilly says as she whips his clothes at his face. She had opened his suitcase while he was day dreaming so that she could replace the shirt she had stolen. Another one to go with her collect.

Donald shoves his pants on and walks over to her so that he can wrap his arm around her muttering in her ear, "Stop calling me Donnie, babe or else I'll have to withhold sex."

Lilly tilts her head up and smirks as she replies with a wink, "You wouldn't be able to resist Ducky."

The nickname makes him groan into her shoulder as he fights the urge again to rip her clothes off. There's a glint in her eye that indicates she knows all too well what she's said. He shakes his head with a sigh and curses, "You'll be the fucking death of me"

"You're going to be dead in a few minutes if you don't get food in me."

The Bellas don't see them until Sunday evening. He has a plane to catch and truthfully, everyone is happy to see him go. They can finally take their earplugs out.

* * *

Beca texts him three simple numbers: 911

Donald is in the middle of dinner with his high school friends when he receives the text. It must have been shit if Beca was texting him. Yes, they kept in touch over the years, but they weren't exactly the sort of friends who texted all the time. His friends give him curious looks when he begs off drinks at the bar. He doesn't tell them that he's heading back to his apartment to FaceTime with his ex-girlfriend. They wouldn't understand.

Lilly is lying on the ground in her room with her face flat on the floor. Beca and Fat Amy stare worriedly at their friend who hasn't moved since they got back home. They tried everything they knew to coax her from her position: wasabi peas, piggy banks, pictures of Unicycle in a tutu, Benji's Harry Potter wands. Nothing worked. So Beca texted Donald in hopes that he'd be able to do something.

She picks up on the first ring and speaks in hushed tones, "Dravid. Help she's just lying on the floor face down."

There's an urgency in Beca's voice that Donald picks up immediately. He tells her to put on FaceTime and to slide the phone in front of Lilly. They're out in the hall and Lilly still hasn't moved or acknowledged her friends so Fat Amy snatches the phone and shoves it in front of her.

"Lilly?" He's lounging in his bed with furrowed eyebrows at the sight of her.

"Don't bother me, I'm trying to count the angry turtle puppets underneath my bed."

He chuckles lightly, quirks his lip upward and deadpans, "That's adorable." It's become their thing – where she uses blatant mistruths and he retaliates with a phrase he'll always believe it true – and he uses it to tug her back to him.

She lifts her head slightly from its position as she blinks at him through the camera. There's a moment of clarity where he sees the dissatisfaction, the anger and the anxiety she's feeling. He yearns to be there so he can wrap his arms around her. Instead he just begins to beat box. He could tell her comforting words or lie through his teeth about how they can overcome this, but he's always been honest with her. So he'll just be there for her because she needs him.

He gestures for her to pick up the beat and smirks at the eye roll the camera catches. As soon as she's got the beat, he starts to sing the song he sent her this week. There's a smile on her face when she hears it and even though he's not there and the sound lags slightly, Lilly doesn't feel so upset anymore.

* * *

She calls him on their way back from the retreat after they had gotten Fat Amy free from the bear trap. The rest of the bus is quiet with everyone but Chloe sleeping. Lilly breathes out a sigh of relief when she hears him pick up and asks, "Did you eat a frog?"

"Do I sound like I did?"

She can hear the amusement in his croaky sleep ridden voice as she shrugs. Lilly listens to the even sounds of him breathing through the phone knowing that she had woken him up. It's three in the morning so midnight for him. If she didn't like the idea of being able to travel in time, she'd hate time zones, "Yes, you do. Was it a zombie frog? They're the worst sounding ones."

"Wouldn't that make me a zombie then?" He asks as if they were talking about the weather.

She shrugs again pondering the question, "I don't think so. It didn't bite you did it?"

"Not that I recall."

Lilly lets his reply end the tangent on zombies and frogs for the moment. This wasn't the reason she called. Donald doesn't speak rather letting her find the words on her time. It's a familiar comforting silence and she suspects that Chloe keeps looking at her through the rearview mirror because she hasn't said anything for over five minutes, "We found our sound."

"That's awesome Lils. So you're all set to win the Worlds?"

Her head bobs up and down in response to his question and she finds herself wondering if he'll be there. It's a hope that seems unreasonable because Copenhagen isn't just a short plane ride away. But it's what she wants. In a room full of strangers, she'd like to have him in her corner. The question is on the tip of her tongue when Donald yawns into the receiver and instead she says, "Go sleep Ducky. We'll talk before I leave for Copenhagen."

"I'll be watching on TV when you win babes."

It's an answer to her unspoken question and she hates that he won't be there.

* * *

The plane ride is tedious and boring, especially with Benji muttering to himself about an Emily or something and Jesse tapping on his phone trying to beat Beca's score on temple run 2. Donald spoke to Lilly only an hour ago as he pretended to still be in San Francisco with the intention of watching it on TV. They didn't lie to each other. But this was a special occasion even as he heard the sad tone of her voice that had him wanting to blurt out that he'd be in the audience.

When they arrive in Copenhagen, the three of them head to the hotel that they organized to stay at. He'd be staying in the same room as Lilly, which Beca helped arrange in exchange for an IOU that she could redeem at any time. He's pretty sure that he let her sucker him into that but he'd do anything for Lilly. Jesse meets him in the lobby an hour later so that they can get something to eat since the competition only starts tomorrow. Beca instructed that they find things to occupy themselves because the Bella's would be practicing all day. Donald got the implication that she thought he'd just distract Lilly.

Donald and Jesse find themselves in a bar near the hotel, which gave them the opportunity to drink to their hearts content without the risk of getting lost. He's gotten to know Jesse pretty well over the years and he still hasn't learned to hold is liquor.

"How'd that interview go?" Donald asks once they've ordered, his fingers tapping against the cool glass of beer.

"Pretty good, I'm hopeful that I'm going to get it."

He nods with a smile as he congratulates his friend. But there's something unsaid in Jesse's response that has him prying further into his close friend's life, "How'd Beca take it?"

Jesse sighs as he takes a long gulp of his beer and shrugs, "Haven't told her yet. I mean she's been going crazy with the internship and this competition and graduation. I didn't want to worry her even further. I'll tell her after this is all over…"

"It's in LA Swanson."

He cringes at Donald's observation. He's been happy in his relationship with Beca these last four years, but with graduation it's only going to change things further. He loves Beca, but he wants to get started on his career just like her. Jesse runs a hand through his hair and shrugs again, "I haven't heard back from them, there's no guarantee..."

"Yeah… just wait to see what they say first." Donald trails off because he senses that his friend doesn't want to talk about it anymore. Doesn't blame him because Beca Mitchell doesn't always handle change all that well. He chooses to change the subject instead, "Congrats on Nationals. I heard the Treblemakers killed it." Pauses as he takes a long drink, "I fucking miss the high of performing man."

"No one would use drugs if they knew they could get the high just from getting on stage." Jesse jokes with a thankful grin. They fall into an easy banter as their food comes and the night slowly drifts later and later. Neither of them bring up the Bellas or the worry that sits in their chests from the fear that this could be their last performance.

* * *

The field is full of cheering fans, acapella music enthusiasts and former acapella members. People who have travelled from across the continents and oceans just to stand and watch the top contenders in each country perform. There are cheers for all the acapella groups but the screams and shouts for DSM permeate the area. But Donald isn't worried. He edges his way back to the front of the crowd, sidestepping and ducking under and around the people who are consumed by DSM's performance, until he spots one of the sole American flags in the crowd. Spread across Jesse's arms is an obnoxious America flag but Donald grins openly at it. There's enough to support for the favourite German acapella group. He's been the favourite at a competition against the Bellas and at the very last minute, they pull something out of their asses and somehow win the whole damn thing.

DSM's set finally ends when Donald reaches Jesse and he greets him with a tap to his shoulder. They share a glance that's mingled with apprehension for the Bella's performance and hope that their girls pull through. Jesse's about to say something when Benji appears at the corner of his eye and speaks for them all, "Our girls are better."

They're set to appear on stage at any minute and that seems to be enough said as they fall into silence. Benji hands him a couple of small flashlights to pass along and Donald cocks his eyebrow. Lilly hadn't shared with him the set list and he's interested to see what the flashlights are for. The three of them edge closer to the front of the crowd and as close to the stage as they're allowed to be. He sends out a half whispered prayer to one of his mother's old Hindi gods that he doesn't believe in before turning his attention back to the stage.

Their uniforms remind him of their first year when they were decked in a mixture of blues and whites and yellows. The Bella colours but no longer hindered by air hostess type outfits. Donald follows the line of Bellas until his eyes catch the only Bella who's ever kept his attention. Lilly sees him immediately, though her face remains stoic and focused, her eyes widen and dance with a mixture of shock and happiness. He grins openly at her, their eyes linked by an invisible tether that washes away the rest of the people until it's just them, but remains silent; she's seen him and knows he's here to support her no matter the outcome and that's the important thing. Her eyes never leave his throughout the performance. His eyes never leave hers even when he hears Jesse call out Beca's name.

The last time he saw her perform, Donald had been mildly impressed by the Bella's performance but especially with hers. His spine had straightened when he heard her scratch the lyrics to the Jesse J song. But his eyes had wavered from hers because he had not known at the time exactly what Lilly meant to him. An attraction obviously connected them but he would only find out later that there was an underlying current pushing him towards her.

Today is different. He's captivated by the way her body moves on stage, by her beat boxing that's really improved, by the confidence that she performs with that he wouldn't be able to tear his eyes away even if he wanted to. Donald cheers loudly with the rest of the crowd at the end of the first song because the Bella's did it again. A similar feeling hits him. The same feeling he felt three years earlier when he had watched the Bella's and known that they would win the competition.

When the legacy of Bella's adorn the stage behind them, Donald fist bumps Jesse because they know that their girls have won it. Stolen the title from underneath the DSM group and Donald fights the urge to gloat in front of the idiot who thought he could hit on his girl. But instead he watches as the Bella's finish the song off with their hands around each other. Without any prompting needed, Jesse and Donald push their way through the crowd wanting to be backstage when the Bella's surge off the stage.

He stands at the bottom of the stairs because he knows that Lilly's going to come tumbling down them and he's ready to catch her. The sounds of elated chatter fills the previous silence as he spots the first couple of Bella's. But they are pushed out of his line of sight when a flurry of black and white and blue enter his vision. Donald can feel her heart pumping with the adrenaline from the performance as he wraps his arms securely around her. Lilly intertwines her legs around his waist and buries her face into his shoulder. He walks them a little over to the side so the rest of the Bella's can pass. They make little comments about them but Donald doesn't even register what they say. He kisses the top of her head and whispers in her ear, "You were fantastic Lils, the crowd loved you guys."

Lilly sighs contently at his words but doesn't acknowledge them otherwise. He senses that she has something else she wants to say so he holds her closer and waits patiently. The seconds pass them but neither of them care as Lilly lifts her head from his shoulder and says, "I once stopped a violent snapping turtle attack with only an earring."

There's a pause, Donald stares at her for a split second trying to make sure she means what he think she means, before he angles his right ear towards her with a grin, "Can't have you defenseless now can we Lilly."

Her fingers nimbly take out his earring from his ear and insert them into her right ear lobe. Lilly laughs sweetly, her lips grazing his ear, and replies, "I'd much rather see you defenseless and in my bed."

"Whoa, slow down there babes, we've got all night," Donald cheekily retorts as he drops her to the ground. Lilly blinks at him with a confused express but he just smirks and gestures for her to climb on his back.

She curls herself on his back, her lips poised at his ear, and whispers all the things she'd rather be doing with the last remnants of her post-performance adrenaline. Donald is grateful that the hotel isn't too far away and hurries down the streets of Copenhagen. The minute they're back in the hotel, he'll deposit her on the bed, rid her of all her unnecessary clothing and kiss her senseless because she's his again and he's always been possessive. If tomorrow she has a large hickey on her neck, well he's only just got her back and he's allowed to stake his claim.

Someday soon, he'll give her the pair of the earring in her ear.

* * *

There's the sound of beat boxing in the early hours of the morning when the rest of Copenhagen seems to be asleep. Donald ambles down the street with a box of pastries in his one hand and a single cup of coffee in the other. He had to hassle the waitress for a takeout container since it wasn't the norm to drink your coffee on the go. He's up early partly because of the change in time-zones and his weekly routine that his body has acclimatized too. They're due to leave tomorrow morning and while the rest of their friends have opted to sight-see, they decided to stay in for the day. It's doubtful they'd have the energy to sight-see anyway. Sleep was the furthest thing from their minds last night with Lilly's performance high and the undeniable lust that coursed through their bodies.

He slips into the room as silently as possible, the pastries and the coffee haphazardly discarded on the table, and strips out of his clothes with the intention of joining Lilly in bed again. She's sleeping with her body sprawled out on the King sized bed. Her hair sprays out behind her head – taking up quite a bit of real estate – and her mouth hangs ajar, which Donald thinks is in fact truly adorable. He'll never tell her though that she drools in her sleep. Someone long ago told her that she talks in her sleep and that's what she believes, but Donald knows the truth.

His heart speeds up when he thinks about the fact that this could be his future. The rest of his life with Lilly sprawled out on his bed and drool on their pillows. It's a future that he wants, but he's always been forced to be realistic. It's might not happen. They've talked about the future, they've talked about getting back together after her graduation. But it's been almost four years since they were in a proper relationship. They might talk, FaceTime and text message all the time, but they were still living separate lives. She's set to move into his place in a month's time and he's going to try his best to make them work. But there's always the possibility that the shift between best friends with benefits to a relationship where their lives are completely intertwined is hard. It hurts to think about a future without Lilly.

"Stop thinking so loud," Lilly mumbles with her eyes still shut, her hands curling around his torso while she speaks, trying to pull him towards her.

He chuckles softly underneath his breath and settles down on the mattress with his arms automatically wrapping around her. Her head rests on his chest and he presses a gentle kiss to her forehead before closing his eyes. The rhythm of her breath soothes him. A few hours from now she'll wake him up with the intention of talking about what's bothering him. Maybe they'll talk or maybe they'll opt for activities that don't need words. They've got the whole day ahead of them in a foreign city. Their future still remains unsteady. But he won't worry about it today.

Today he's got Lilly in his arms. It's all he really wants in this moment.

And as their hearts pick up that beat that only their ears seem to know, he's hopeful that today isn't the end.

* * *

 **A/N:** I would like to just say that I am truly astounded by the alerts I still receive on my email. It is amazing that people are still reading my first story of our favourite pairing two years later. And though I will not be returning to that piece, it still makes me smile when I read the odd review or see that someone favourited the story. So thank you!

And for now this ends Lilly and Donald's journey (perhaps we'll see more of them later). Please leave a review if you liked it (:


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